New Delhi | Congress leader Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday with a play on veteran actor Nana Patekar's popular movie "Ab Tak Chappan", referring to the PM's "56-inch chest" remark and saying that people are now asking "kab tak chappan".
The Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh hailed Patekar, who passed away in Goa on Thursday, for his contribution to theatre and cinema.
"Nana Patekar was a highly impressive figure on both stage and screen. He will be remembered for a long time for his many memorable roles and dialogues," Ramesh said.
Noting that one of Patekar's well-known films was "Ab Tak Chappan", he said that in the past decade, the word "chappan" (Hindi for 56) has taken on a new meaning in the Indian psyche.
"This self-proclaimed mindset has now been completely exposed," he said.
"The public is asking: 'Kab tak chappan?'" the Congress leader said.
"Ab Tak Chhappan" was a 2004 crime drama film directed by Shimit Amin starring Patekar in the lead role of a police officer known as an encounter specialist. Patekar received rave reviews for his performance in the movie.
Modi had originally made the "56-inch chest" (chhappan inch ki chhaati) remark in January 2014. The Congress and other opposition parties have often invoked it to target the PM.
The opposition's aggressive push comes days after a report by The Indian Express said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi objected on record at least 14 times over the last 10 months, mostly to decisions and orders related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Under fire over objections raised by two of its commissioners, the Election Commission had asserted that differing views and observations are a normal part of deliberations in any institution and that all its orders carry full legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.
